I’m so happy that you’ve joined me for the third and final installment of my “Back to School” blog series. As I continue to share with you ideas on how to use each Paper Crafts magazine, I’d like to touch base on style. I think we all have one, but some are not as easy to recognize as others, as many cross over.

There’s graphic, shabby chic (or vintage), fun and cute and so many more. You might find that you are drawn to the same style that you, yourself create. I think most of us can appreciate a beautiful card in any style.

I think the pumpkin card created by Teri Anderson is absolutely adorable. It’s clean, graphic and oh SO cute! But let’s see how this card would look if it were made with a shabby chic style in mind, which mostly consists of patterns, distressing, some playful buttons and jute or twine.

And here's my shabby chic Welcome Home card.

I kept Teri’s outstanding color combination and design, but instead of solid cardstock, I replaced those papers with patterned papers. I stamped a pattern onto the base kraft cardstock. You can alter solid papers with stamps, rub-ons or doodles to create your own patterned papers. Make sure that there is a white core if you choose to sand the edges. I changed the topic completely and went with a “welcome home” theme (the possibilities are endless). I find that small, subtle patterns typically work best.

Now let’s change it around and see what a shabby chic card looks like in a graphic style.

Like Teri’s card, I kept the same design and color combination as Beatriz did on her sweet card. I pulled out my cardstock colors and got to work. (I couldn’t resist using a polka dot cardstock though). I punched holes in the cream cardstock to let the black show through. Circles and dots are very graphic. I substituted the polka dot ribbon for a bold striped one and used bold black letters for the sentiment. I decided to add touches of orange and yellow to draw in my colors.

And here's my clean and graphic Hi Card.

If the clean and graphic style appeals to you, why not make a card and enter it in Paper Crafts’ September Gallery Challenge? If you need some inspiration, check out the “Graphically Speaking” feature in the September/October issue. You’ve got until Monday, Sept. 28 to upload your project image HERE.

I hope that I have given you something new to think about. Please take a closer look at each Paper Crafts magazine because they truly offer a fountain of creative inspiration. I appreciate you sharing some of your time with me today.

Kim Hughes,Paper Crafts Go-to Gal

P.S. I’d love to hear what card-making style you naturally gravitate towards. Leave a comment and I’ll pick three winners to receive a copy of our September/October issue. All comments must be received by midnight (MST) on Tuesday, Sept. 22.

67 comments

I absolutely love shabby chic and love to add distressing, inking, lace and the general array of shabby goodness to my work. I also love the classic style of cards too, that will never date with their clean lines and classic shapes and patterns that do not show their age. Thanks for showing how one style can be adapted into another Kim. Cheers!

thanks, kim, for illustrating the easy changes one can make in styles! i’ve heard about it–i’ve read about it–but i’ve never SEEN it done before! now i’ll just HAVE to try it! i agree with you about PC being chock full of wonderful inspiration–shouldn’t be hard to choose a project to re-do!

even though i appreciate some element in all the styles, my favorite to work with is clean and graphic–there’s something about its minimalist style that i can’t seem to conquer in my home! thanks again! ~k

I tend to gravitate toward something simple and easy. Most of my card-making time is when my husband is getting our son ready for bed – and his turn is every other night. So, if I can take that 20 minutes and make a quick card, then I am happy!

I love this interpreting idea Kim–in fact, I suggested it–and I hope to see a regular column in this vein in the magazine. I would also bring up a Gallery issue at the main magazine website – can it not be separated into a “cards” and a “layouts” gallery? Having 5000+ pages of mixed fare makes it more time consuming to search for inspiration in just one category. Please forward this suggestion along the right path for some action. Thank you – and great cards!

Although it’s the fun and cute cards that really catch my eye, the cards I make myself tend to be more distressed. So a combo of shabby chic/fun and cute? (Sometimes I gotta just step away from the inkpad! 😉 )
Great examples, Kim – thanks for sharing your cards w/ us.

OH! I wish I could pick one style!! It depends on the day! A lot of times I’m clean & simple- but rarely graphic. I LOVE vintage/shabby, but I don’t usually have enough layers to really be true to that either!! I *love* the fun & cute cards YOU do!! 🙂

well, I am not sure if I have style period – ; ) – but I do notice if I I am left to my own devices, I find myself sponging and edging everything – so I would say shabby – thanks for all the insights!
Sandra

Shabby and whimsy are my “go to” styles when I sit down to create cards. I just recently started making “photo” cards featuring the antics and pics of my 16 month old grandson – it’s amazing to see the world through the eyes of a child – and to capture those moments and share them in a card – priceless !